Numerous temporary partitions for vehicles have been provided in prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,095,837 to Hunter; 4,366,977 to Davis et al.; 4,621,856 to McKenzie; 4,708,384 to LaRosa; 4,938,518 to Willemsen; 4,971,378 to Setina; 5,058,941 to Solomon et al.; 5,207,260 to Commesso; 5,207,722 to Lee; 5,238,282 to Watson et al.; 5,246,261 to McCormack; and 5,382,068 to Simmons et al. all are illustrative of such prior art. While these units may be suitable for the particular purpose to which they address, they would not be as suitable for the purposes of the present invention as heretofore described.
The Hunter U.S. Pat. No. 4,095,837 discloses an air partition for automobile passenger compartments. A partition for segregating the air space within the passenger compartment of an automobile or the like relative to the passenger seats thereof including an elongated upper support track for affixment to the inner roof portion of an automobile, a plurality of side brackets for removable affixment to the opposed inner wall portions of the automobile, and a transparent curtain secured on the free lateral edges thereof to the plurality of side brackets, and on the uppermost free edge thereof to the upper support track.
The Davis et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,366,977 discloses a partition for a cargo transporter. A removable and movable partition for dividing up the interior of a cargo transporter has a boundary made up of mutually perpendicular inflatable tube sections which rigidify upon inflation and urge themselves tightly into contact with the walls, floor and ceiling respectively of the transporter. The inflation of the tubes also tensions between them a double dividing wall, of two parallel sheets of flexible material which are respectively secured tangentially to the tubes, and which may have a flap for access to inflation/deflation valves. Shaped spacer means may be interposed between the tube(s) and floor and ceiling if they are corrugated or otherwise interrupted.
The McKenzie U.S. Pat. No. 4,621,856 discloses a mountable and demountable partition structure for motor vehicles. A mountable and demountable partition structure for motor vehicles, such as vans and station wagons, is provided. The partition comprises a panel which is adapted to extend substantially from top to bottom and from side to side of the vehicle, where it is mounted; and is mounted by fastener means extending downwardly through brackets at the bottom edge of the panel into plates secured in the floor of the vehicle, and through brackets at the top of the panel into tracks mounted between roof ribs in the roof of the vehicle. The panel comprises three panel portions, each of which extends across the width of the panel, where the upper panel portion is tilted forwardly from the vertical, and the lower portion is tilted rearwardly from the vertical, when mounted. The overall configuration of the panel is that of a forwardly bowed panel; and at least the upper and middle panel portions of the panel are made of a solid, translucent material such as sheet polycarbonate, thereby providing a clear, glare-free and unobstructed rearwards view for the driver of the vehicle. Because of its bowed configuration, the partition provides additional safety to the occupants of the vehicle in the event that a forwardly moving object strikes the partition, as in the event of a collision when passengers or cargo are not secured in the rear of the vehicle. The partition provides for energy efficiency by permitting greater loading of the cargo compartment of the vehicle, as well as maintaining heating or air conditioning effects to the passenger compartment of the vehicle.
The LaRosa U.S. Pat. No. 4,708,384 discloses a protective automobile partition. In a protective automobile separator, a screen like divider to be installed between the front and rear seats. L-shaped brackets secure the divider to the inner walls of the automobile. The L-shaped brackets have centrally located longitudinal slots through which is bolted an adaptor bar which runs along side the divider. The longitudinal slots allow the adaptor bar to be placed at a predetermined location between the divider and the inner wall of the automobile in order to prevent a passenger from reaching around the separator.
The Willemsen U.S. Pat. No. 4,938,518 discloses a vehicle partition assembly. The invention serves as a thermal barrier between the passenger compartment and the cargo area of a vehicle to be used to transport cargo, enabling elongated objects to be stored along the entire internal length of the vehicle, while at the same time enabling the driver of the vehicle to have a clear and unobstructed view of the rear window of the vehicle. The assembly is mounted across the width of a vehicle and is secured across the top of the vehicle. The assembly includes a cross member, a viewing means, and a suspended thermal barrier. The thermal barrier comprises a plurality of flexible transparent strips which form a curtain. The flexible strips extend substantially to the floor of the vehicle, in an overlapping relationship with each adjacent strip.
The Setina U.S. Pat. No. 4,971,378 discloses a pivoted automobile partition with adjustable spring bias. A pivoted automobile partition is described including an adjustable spring bias means for adjusting the force of a coil spring which pivots the partition from a lowered position to a raised position. The adjustment means includes a threaded pivot shaft which is connected to one end of the coil spring and is adjusted into different rotational positions to change the tension of such spring. The pivot shaft is fixed in its adjusted position to a pivot arm on the partition by lock nuts. A tubular housing and plastic cover sleeve completely enclose the spring bias means, so that it cannot be tampered with and cannot injure rear seat passengers.
The Solomon et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,058,941 discloses a vehicle interior barrier. A barrier for partitioning the front and rear seat compartments in a motor vehicle is disclosed. The barrier includes a transparent wall dimensioned to approximate the cross-sectional area of the vehicle interior at a location behind the front seat. The wall has a pocket for printed matter in its lower half, and one or more light refracting channels can be located in the wall. A frame encloses one or more edges of the wall and includes an elongate channel section containing one or more electrical lights. The barrier can be installed, for example, in a taxi cab, and electricity supplied to illuminate printed matter placed in the pocket of the wall.
The Commesso U.S. Pat. No. 5,207,260 discloses an adjustable restrain system for articles. The present invention relates to an adjustable restraint system for confining articles within a desired space in a storage compartment such as an automobile trunk. One embodiment of the restraint system includes at least two posts positioned within the storage compartment and a piece of fabric secured to one of the posts for defining the store space. The system further includes a fastener for maintaining the fabric in a taut condition and thereby preventing movement of the articles within the storage compartment. The posts are preferably adjustable in height, so that the system of the present invention may be used in different dimensioned storage compartments. In another embodiment of the present invention, multiple posts and multiple pieces of fabric are used to form multiple article storage spaces.
The Lee U.S. Pat. No. 5,207,722 discloses a partition for air-conditioned vehicle. For the purpose of achieving more efficient control of the interior temperature of front half of a passenger vehicle, this invention discloses an attachable and detachable transparent partition mounted on rear side window panes across the mid section behind front seats. One version of the embodiment is applicable to two door vehicles with fixed rear side window panes. Another version applicable to four door vehicles does not interfere with opening and closing operations of rear doors.
The Watson et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,238,282 discloses a vehicle interior partition. This invention relates to accessories for automobiles, vans, aircraft, minivans and station wagons and in particular to an improved partition comprised of a main support beam which requires no permanent attachment to the vehicle in which it is installed and from which is suspended generally from the roof to the floor transparent, semi-transparent or opaque curtain panels whose primary purpose is to substantially confine heated or cooled air or air containing smoke to a specific area of the vehicle. The device is adjustable, requiring no permanent alterations to fit the interior of a very large variety of vehicles of different descriptions, can be collapsed and folded while not in use and remains intact while being portable and can be installed anywhere along the length of a vehicle interior where trim molding, flanges or extrusions of vehicle components or door hardware exists.
The McCormack U.S. Pat. No. 5,246,261 discloses a safety partition for motor vehicles. A one piece partition for the interior of van type vehicles molded of plastic material and extending transversely from side to side and from the roof to the floor with the partition being positioned directly behind the driver and passenger seats to give maximum cargo space in the rear compartment of the vehicle. A console extends forwardly from the partition into the forward compartment between the driver's and passenger's seats and opens rearwardly to elongate the storage space offered by the rear compartment. The entire perimeter of the partition and the bottom of the console is in close proximity to vehicle portions so installation is made by attaching means such as double sided tape fixed to the perimeters and to the adjacent vehicle portions to form a thermal and safety barrier between the compartments.
The Simmons et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,382,068 discloses an easily installed flexible barrier for vans. A form fitting flexible sheet van barrier wall is held in place by reusable adhesive strips as a dust sealing thermal barrier for mounting behind the driver compartment of a van to divide the van into driving and working compartments. The sheet may be rolled up and stored adjacent the van roof. The flexible sheet carries a window which may be opened to permit the flow of air between the compartments. Also weight bearing accessories are provided on the sheet for storing items such as coat hangers and work tools. The barrier comes in an assembly manually retrofittable to vans without tooling or van modification.